Got a problem pet? Teach him manners

Published: Monday, October 28, 2013 at 05:39 PM.

Last of a three-day series about the Craven-Pamlico County Animal Shelter.

A lady is leaning against the counter at the Craven-Pamlico Animal Shelter. She has a cell phone placed against her ear and she is merrily chatting, “Oh, I’m just over here at the doggy jail.”

A jail implies crimes, and if these dogs are in here for crimes, most, unfortunately, were committed by their owners.

Animal control officers seem sometimes perplexed or amazed at the animals that are brought in for problems they believe are easily corrected. While some owners, they say, do all they can to train their pets, they can still tell stories, such as the one about the dog, mentioned in an earlier part in this series, that ate a sandwich its owner had left sitting unguarded on a table.

One of the biggest problems owners claim upon turning in their pets is that they’re out of control.

“It takes time, it takes energy, it takes commitment,” Smith said of turning these animals around. “We live in a very disposable society, and I think animals are a part of that mentality.”

While animals adopted from the shelter are thankful and loving pets, you can pretty safely guess that few of them have had any significant amount of obedience training.

Last of a three-day series about the Craven-Pamlico County Animal Shelter.

A lady is leaning against the counter at the Craven-Pamlico Animal Shelter. She has a cell phone placed against her ear and she is merrily chatting, “Oh, I’m just over here at the doggy jail.”

A jail implies crimes, and if these dogs are in here for crimes, most, unfortunately, were committed by their owners.

Animal control officers seem sometimes perplexed or amazed at the animals that are brought in for problems they believe are easily corrected. While some owners, they say, do all they can to train their pets, they can still tell stories, such as the one about the dog, mentioned in an earlier part in this series, that ate a sandwich its owner had left sitting unguarded on a table.

One of the biggest problems owners claim upon turning in their pets is that they’re out of control.

“It takes time, it takes energy, it takes commitment,” Smith said of turning these animals around. “We live in a very disposable society, and I think animals are a part of that mentality.”

While animals adopted from the shelter are thankful and loving pets, you can pretty safely guess that few of them have had any significant amount of obedience training.

You need to know what you’re getting into. Pets are a long-term investment.

“We try to talk to people that come in,” Smith said. “This is what you’re going to have to expect, this is what kind of money you’re going to have to put into it.”

Patience. Determination. And, yes, money. These are the things that make a good pet.

“Number one,” Smith says, “get it spayed or neutered. That curbs so many behaviors once they don’t have those hormones. Number two, get it into training.”

Also, make sure your pet has the kind of personality that matches yours. Even mutts take on the personality of the breeds that make up their canine soup. An elderly person who just wants a laid-back companion should probably not go for a sporting breed. There are plenty of books and sites — the American Kennel Club for one — that provide information about dogs and their traits. The same goes for cats, to a lesser degree.

***

Dona Baker is a professional dog trainer in New Bern who shared some advice on behavior modification for new pets.

“If a dog develops problem behaviors, it’s usually because the dog hasn’t had any guidance from the owner,” she said. “You take a canine and bring it into your home, you need to teach it what items are theirs. Just like children, you need to have rules, but you also need to teach them.

“They are not furry little humans,” she adds. “Some people don’t realize how much training is involved when you bring a dog home. It’s a huge commitment.

“People get frustrated with that. It’s not the dog’s fault, and they give up and take them to the shelter. Most of that is preventable.”

Baker agrees with Smith’s notions that dogs can be at their most trying about the time they reach their teens in dog years — that is, between nine and 24 months. “It takes about that much time for people to get frustrated with an untrained dog,” she said.

As to training, Baker said that using a harsh voice or hitting your dog is not the best way to go.

“You know the adage that you get more flies with honey? Well, behavior modification, positive reinforcement gets you farther,” she said.

Misbehaving dogs often are seeking attention, and the trick is to convince them that attention comes quickest when they obey.

As an example, she spoke of how she trains dogs not to jump. “I put my hand on the dog. I just use a (verbal) behavior marker that simply annoys. I dodge the dog. And then I teach the dog to get my attention: the moment that dog sits I praise the dog. I reward the dog.”

“The thing is to give your dog good manners,” she said. “Dog training is very easy. It’s a lot of fun. You just need someone who can teach you to train a dog.”

A number of classes are available: Baker offers both individual, in-your-home training and, for a lower price, group training in a classroom environment. Some pet stores, such as PetSmart, also offer classes. If money is a major problem, there are books and websites that offer advice. A quick search for “pet training” on YouTube, for instance, gives 2,840,000 results.

***

One interesting statewide program that is offered in this area is New Leash On Life.

Every eight weeks or so, Trinity Smith selects four dogs that are rough around the edge, but have potential. The dogs are then sent to the state prison on Alligator Road near Vanceboro.

There, a team of six inmates — four primary trainers and two assistants — work with the dogs for eight to 10 weeks, training them to become good house pets.

Brenda Malenga, a case worker at the prison, oversees the program, approving the trainers and assisting Pals for Paws, the agency that adopts the dogs out.

It’s a program that helps everyone: adopting owners, dogs and inmates, who receive certification in dog training and veterinary assistance for their work. No other prison in the state offers this certification.

Inmate Gary Clayton is a dog lover and inmate who has been working on the program in Vanceboro for about a year. He was transferred from the Caledonia program in order to receive his certification.

Clayton’s current dog is a beagle mix named Benny.

While Benny is kept in a kennel at night and during meal times, he spends all his other time with Clayton. He has his own doggy bowl and bed in Clayton’s cell.

“These guys are with these dogs seven days a week,” Malenga said, “rain or shine.”

Clayton says it’s a commitment.

“You have to love dogs,” Clayton said. “Seven days a week, 24 hours a day, you’re responsible for the dog. No matter the weather, you have to go outside. It has to be fed.” There’s also the training time and seeing that the dog receives ample socialization with inmates and staff.

“And you get dogs that are stubborn,” Malenga adds.

Clayton said: “You have to be a respectful person to have this job. It’s hard training a dog in here if you’re hot-headed.”

Bad trainers are carefully culled and new ones are eased into their new jobs. Four main trainers are kept working and have prime responsibility for their dogs; so much so, in fact, that even staff cannot touch their dogs if they don’t allow it.

The two training assistants are studying to take over the primary training task when another prisoner moves on to a minimum security prison or otherwise exits the program. New trainees may be suggested or advised against by inmates, but Malenga has the final say.

People who are serving time for animal cruelty, child abuse or pedophilia are not allowed in the program at all.

Professional trainers train the inmates in their job.

Those trainers become as close with each other as they do with the dogs.

“We live in the same (cell), we eat at the same table,” Clayton said. “We’re family.”

While the dogs are training, Pals for Paws is looking for those dogs’ adopters. The prospective pets’ photographs are put up on the organization’s website at palsforpaws.org (look for “NONL Dogs” on the left hand side). Interested persons may apply and are then interviewed by the rescue group.

When a possible family is found, they are brought to the prison where Malenga takes the dog to the front gate. There, at a picnic table, dog and hopeful master have about a half hour to visit.

If everything’s a go, the adopters come to the New Leash On Life graduation day. There they meet their dogs’ trainers and take them home. Their adoption fee is $135, a price that includes spaying and microchip. They also get to see the next batch of dogs arriving for the program.

“That way you can see how wild they are when they come in,” Malenga said.

Clayton said that Bennie is one of the best dogs he has worked with. While he grows fond of his dogs, and they often become attached to him, it isn’t really hard to let them go. “I know it’s a business,” he said. “I know he’s going to go to a good home.”

Clayton has high praise for the program and its positive effects.

“I think it’s the best rehabilitation tool the state’s got,” he said. “I know I get more out of it than (the dogs) are. It’s done a lot for me. It gives me confidence. It teaches you respect for the dog. The dog respects you, and you respect the people you deal with.”

When he gets out, he knows the training he’s received will help him. “It helps you become a productive member of society when you leave. It shows you’ve done something.”

Just as important, perhaps, is what it does for him inside the prison. “It humanizes you,” he said, scratching Bennie’s ear. “It gives you a sense of home, they give us purpose.

“There’s nothing else in the world that doesn’t ask for anything, but will love you unconditionally. They don’t look at you and say, ‘You’re an inmate! You committed a crime!’

“I can wake up and feel I’m having a bad day, but when I get to the kennel and see Benny…” He trails off a moment before going on. “I may be missing my kids. But he’ll rub up against me in that certain way and it eases your pain.”